Biotechnology company aids in mesothelioma research

Because the search for a cure of mesothelioma continues, new innovations in the field of biology, medicine and technology are promising. Sigma Life Sciences is a company to add their expertise to the fight against the deadly mesothelioma and other cancers. Their goal to "provide researchers with cellular models of cancer that is expected to improve drug development for personalized medicine", Sigma Life Science provides an important role in research in mesothelioma.

Sigma Life Sciences manufactures and supplies products for all areas of scientific study and research. From animal models genetically modified cell lines, Sigma Life Science provides ready-to-use and customized solutions for scientific tests. Their new line of genetically modified tumor cells is of particular interest for mesothelioma researchers.

Mesothelioma is a rare tumor that affects about you thousand Americans each year. E 'caused by asbestos, a chemical WHO has labeled as a type 1 carcinogen. use of asbestos has been reduced significantly in many countries but is still used in developing land for construction and manufacturing. The total number of mesothelioma cases is estimated at ten thousand and is expected to be increasing.

Once the asbestos fibers are inhaled, they can begin to develop cancer of the lining of the lungs and other body cavity. irregularly shaped tumors to grow for decades without showing signs or symptoms. Most patients have no idea mesothelioma being sick up to twenty to fifty years after initial exposure to asbestos. Although there are mesothelioma treatment options, there is no known cure. Patient's average life expectancy of eighteen months after being diagnosed with mesothelioma.

Using their own instrument, CompoZr, Sigma Life Science aid in the development of personalized medicine through the "target validation, identification of the mechanical action of drugs and investigations of disease development, the progression and remission. "Sigma Life Science CompoZr allowed to produce" knockout "models. The process used for the mice they won the silver star of" Top Ten Innovations of 2010 "by the magazine Scientist.

The term "knockout" refers to a process that renders a gene from a sample of cells irrelevant and removed, or "knockout" compared to cells in normal individuals. Edward Weinstein, director of the Center for the essay Sigma Life Science Laboratories SAGE, said knockout technology will be "scientists powerful new tools to study human diseases."

Sigma Life Sciences will bring its new range of models of genetically modified cells of colon-rectum and lung.

Indian Biotech Investment

India, the darling of the world in terms of the industry is concerned about the bio technology offers enormous opportunities for businesses to invest in India. The growth of the three areas of medicine, bio-technology climate, the agricultural and industrial products, and beneficial to also make India as one of the ideal destinations for global investment flows into India. Here are some areas where opportunities exist for India:

Vaccines: huge and growing population of India is among the largest world market for vaccines of all kinds. India is facing a growing demand for new generation vaccines and "combination" as DTP with hepatitis B, hepatitis A and polio vaccine injection, and several veterinary and poultry vaccines. In addition to conventional vaccines, rDNA have a market potential and offer great opportunities for business economy.

Drug Discovery: Opportunities to improve existing production structures and economies of scale based on licensing, joint ventures, the establishment of production bases and to establish rules for the distribution of royalties for all products and therapeutic drugs approved for marketing in India, in particular insulin, alpha interferon, hepatitis B surface antigen-based vaccine, erythropoietin, streptokinase, chymotrypsin, and others.

Agriculture: hybrid seeds, including genetically modified seeds such as Bt cotton represent new business opportunities based on performance improvement, and development of a manufacturing base in biopesticides and biofertilizers facilitate the entry of India in the growing market organic food or natural. genetically modified crops, like corn, cotton, millet, mustard and other vegetables diet also reinforced good potential in agriculture and also leads to improving agricultural production and productivity per hectare.

drug research: new research and developments in the field make it a center for technological development of new products and drugs with market lending to India and developed the same thing. Indian pharmaceutical companies possess competitive skills in chemical synthesis and process analysis and mining technologies, which can be used to develop new drugs and formulations. New investments in research and defense of patents successfully by a number of Indian companies in global markets has opened up new markets for ten Indian companies.

research and clinical trials: Clinical trials in India cost less than a fraction of what it costs in developed markets, clinical research organizations may apply for research projects and pilot projects in India by international companies, provided they are able to demonstrate international best practices and monitoring procedures.

Bioinformatics: Bioinformatics Indian companies can play an important role in key sectors such as mining, lexican, mapping and sequencing the DNA extraction, the design of molecular simulation on the world market for services bilinformatics. complex algorithm of writing and the use of computing power to study the 3D structures of proteins are the headlines in this area and India offers good investment opportunities for the same.

National Biotechnology Policy- Salient features

The need for an integrated biotech policy with sufficient attention to different subsets of the sector such as health, agriculture, environment, industry and other application areas is a prerequisite for calcium in the thumb to the progress of Indian biotechnology sector. National Science and Technology Policy of the Government and the Vision Statement on Biotechnology issued by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) to provide a framework and give strategic direction for different sectors to accelerate the pace of development of biotechnologies India. The policy has given meaning to the efforts of public and private sectors, the key being a quadrilateral agreement between universities, industry and other laboratories working in the field, and the State.

Main features of the policy:

• The need to increase the number of doctoral programs in life sciences and biotechnology, as a strong pool of academic leaders is essential to sustained innovation. A national working group agreed to establish programs of graduate and post-graduate model, to attract talent to the life sciences and working conditions for scientists to conduct industry-oriented research

• The need for more mature technologies such as diagnostics and vaccines. While the Indian industry is in strong product development and marketing business benefits of biotechnology in India does not have the necessary infrastructure for R & D molecular modeling, protein engineering, drug design and immunological studies. The DBT will act to facilitate a unique mechanism for wind farm window biotech plants and encourage private sector participation in infrastructure development

• India strategy should aim to increase the value of R & D and production of intellectual property rights. India needs to provide active support through incubator funds and various incentives, and increased focus on innovation, the ability to create a pipeline of products continuously. clear government policies to promote innovation and market knowledge will drive the growth of the biotechnology sector

• The need for government support, tax incentives and tax benefits are essential for this sector, biotechnology is the most research-intensive companies in the sector and to invest 20-30 percent of their operating costs in R & D or technology outsourcing. In addition, financial support for the development of early-stage products and small and medium-sized companies is the key to sustaining innovation

• Creating a Small Business Innovation Research Initiative (SBIR) DBT through the system to support small and medium-sized enterprises through loans and grants. The support system for pre-proof of concept, innovative and original research on mentoring

• Establishment of biotechnology parks to provide a mechanism for the licensing of new technologies for biotechnology companies to come to start new businesses and realize the value of early stage technology with a minimum of financial data. Parks to facilitate technology transfer by serving as a stimulus for entrepreneurship through partnership among innovators from academia, R & D institutions and industry.

• Need a mechanism for scientific, rigorous, transparent, consistent and effective assessment of biosecurity, a single national authority on biotechnology to be established and governed by an independent administrative structure.

Modern biotechnology- Sustainable growth

Modern biotechnology is expected to have a number of products for the treatment of some problems of food security in developing countries. It offers the possibility of an agricultural system that relies more on biological rather than chemical applications. Potential applications of modern biotechnology in agriculture are: to increase yields while reducing inputs of fertilizers, herbicides and insecticides, which confers salt tolerance and drought on crops, increasing the duration of post-harvest loss reduction, increasing the content of nutritious products, and distribution of vaccine. The availability of these products could only play an important role in reducing hunger and improving food security, but also have the opportunity to address some health problems in the developing world.

The achievement of higher expected returns in developing countries can contribute directly to reducing poverty, increasing household incomes of small farmers who adopt these technologies, and indirectly through their positive effects, as evidenced by the declining price of herbicides and insecticides.

priority areas, in fact, some developing countries have identified as the tolerances of alkaline earth metals, drought and soil salinity, disease resistance, crops and crops with greater nutritional value. The adoption of technologies to extend the shelf life could be useful in helping to reduce post-harvest losses in crops of regional importance. main candidates in terms of choice of crops for development are the so-called "orphan crops" such as cassava, sweet potato, millet, sorghum and sweet potatoes.

Currently, the many promises of modern biotechnology that may have an impact on food security could have been achieved in most developing countries. The adoption of modern biotechnology has been remarkably low given the number of factors behind the food safety problems. In part, this may be because the first generation of commercially available crops using modern biotechnology have been modified with genes unique to confer resistance to pests, weeds and insects, non-complex characteristics that affect crop growth in difficult conditions. Secondly, the technologies developed by companies in industrialized countries, with little or no direct investment in, and derive little economic benefit in developing countries.

Although current commercial GM crops are not designed to solve specific problems of developing countries, their adoption has shown that may be relevant in some countries - for example, the planting of herbicide-tolerant soybeans in Argentina Bt cotton as a cash crop by resource-poor farmers in China and South Africa have led to significant benefits for farmers. On average, Bt cotton farmers in China have reduced pesticide use by 70%, producing a kilogram of cotton at a cost 28% less than non-Bt farmers. These benefits have had a significant impact on health, agronomic, environmental and economic impact of about 5 million resource-poor farmers of more than eight provinces.

Different agro-economic studies have been commissioned since the introduction of seed derived from modern biotechnology in the United States. A report shows that the increase in higher yield were obtained with an insect-resistant maize, while the largest decrease in input costs has been observed in herbicide-tolerant soybeans.

There are a lot more research must be dedicated to finding solutions to food problems and use of biotechnology techniques in the field. developing countries have more interest in these technologies and therefore they need to take the lead in this.

Indian Biotech Investment

India, the darling of the world in terms of the industry is concerned about the bio technology offers enormous opportunities for businesses to invest in India. The growth of the three areas of medicine, bio-technology climate, the agricultural and industrial products, and beneficial to also make India as one of the ideal destinations for global investment flows into India. Here are some areas where opportunities exist for India:

Vaccines: huge and growing population of India is among the largest world market for vaccines of all kinds. India is facing a growing demand for new generation vaccines and "combination" as DTP with hepatitis B, hepatitis A and polio vaccine injection, and several veterinary and poultry vaccines. In addition to conventional vaccines, rDNA have a market potential and offer great opportunities for business economy.

Drug Discovery: Opportunities to improve existing production structures and economies of scale based on licensing, joint ventures, the establishment of production bases and to establish rules for the distribution of royalties for all products and therapeutic drugs approved for marketing in India, in particular insulin, alpha interferon, hepatitis B surface antigen-based vaccine, erythropoietin, streptokinase, chymotrypsin, and others.

Agriculture: hybrid seeds, including genetically modified seeds such as Bt cotton represent new business opportunities based on performance improvement, and development of a manufacturing base in biopesticides and biofertilizers facilitate the entry of India in the growing market organic food or natural. genetically modified crops, like corn, cotton, millet, mustard and other vegetables diet also reinforced good potential in agriculture and also leads to improving agricultural production and productivity per hectare.

drug research: new research and developments in the field make it a center for technological development of new products and drugs with market lending to India and developed the same thing. Indian pharmaceutical companies possess competitive skills in chemical synthesis and process analysis and mining technologies, which can be used to develop new drugs and formulations. New investments in research and defense of patents successfully for a number of Indian companies in global markets has opened up new markets for ten Indian companies.

research and clinical trials: Clinical trials in India cost less than a fraction of what it costs in developed markets, clinical research organizations may apply for research projects and pilot projects in India by international companies, provided they are able to demonstrate international best practices and monitoring procedures.

Bioinformatics: Bioinformatics Indian companies can play an important role in key sectors such as mining, lexican, mapping and sequencing the DNA extraction, the design of molecular simulation on the world market for services bilinformatics. complex algorithm of writing and the use of computing power to study the 3D structures of proteins are the headlines in this area and India offers good investment opportunities for the same.

Initiatives to promote Biotechnology in India

Without losing sight of the huge opportunities offered by the various aspects of biotechnology for the development of the nation, addressing issues of food security, agricultural production and efficiency, industrial pollution and the application and benefits of drugs The Indian government has taken a number of initiatives to promote growth of the biotechnology industry in India.

An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGOME), taking into account the provisions for the creation of special economic zones (SEZ) and the SEZ Act and rules relaxed the rules in terms of area and the area requirement Built for the biotechnology industry for the sum of 10 hectares and 40,000 square feet. This will encourage entrepreneurship, innovation and greater participation of small investors in biotechnology, health and agriculture in particular.

The Government has taken specific measures to promote the biotechnology industry and help increase sales of the biotechnology sector. Initiatives have been taken to ensure an environment conducive to industrial growth, such as exemption from the biotechnology sector a compulsory license, allowing 100 percent FDI in the sector, reducing the area of ​​SEZ at parity with the IT industry by providing tax incentives for R & D recognized industries in terms of exemption from customs duties on capital goods, the reduction of import duties of 150 percent against a weighted deduction of R & D Expenditure

Department of Biotechnology, also supports R & D and technology development, both in public and private sector to develop products and processes that provide affordable solutions from biotechnology to food insecurity and health problems and more questions.

R & D in agricultural biotechnology is supported to develop improved varieties of crops resistant to abiotic and biotic stresses, especially drought. Salt-resistant GM rice has been developed and is currently in field test. Bio fortification of staple foods as important as rice, wheat and maize improvement of macro-nutrients such as iron and zinc has been launched. The country has also participated in the International Rice Genome with ten other countries. complete sequence of the rice genome was completed. It is expected that decoded the rice genome will help in the discovery of genes and DNA for the development of improved varieties.

In health, research continues to develop low-cost and cost effective solutions to public health. A number of vaccines and diagnostics have been developed which are at different stages of the process. Diagnostics for HIV, Japanese encephalitis have been transferred to industry. Rota virus vaccine is in advanced stage of experimentation with the industry. The programs have been funded for the development of drug targets identified for the treatment of diseases or NCDs.

SOCIAL AND ETHICAL CONCERNS ABOUT GM FOODS

Throughout the world, food is a part of the cultural and social life, and has a religious significance for people. Therefore, any technological change resulting from the science of biotechnology, including changes to the genetic base of cultivated plants or animals used for food, may face social resistance. In many countries, people interact with nature, often in collaboration with religious views, is resistance to changing social and ethical issues that interfere with the genes. Considering that biotechnology will contribute to achieving the stated objective of food security and the tide on food crises in many countries, the fact remains that always the reason for the feelings and strong opposition to genetically modified foods are much more complex variables and different regions of the world.

While in developed countries and advanced developing countries, the polls indicate that the lack of information is not the main reason for the opposition to GM crops there. The public is not for or against GMOs in itself - people are discussing the pros and cons of GMOs, and are aware of the contradictions within these arguments. In addition, people are not asking for zero risk. They are well aware that their life is full of risks to be compared with each other and against the potential benefits. A key finding is that people do not react much to the genetic modification of a specific technology, but rather the context in which GMOs are developed and the benefits they are supposed to produce.

However, in less developed countries and developing countries, lack of knowledge and awareness play an important role in whipping up passion and feelings against the bogeyman known as genetically modified crops and its effects, some imaginary bad for society as a whole. The irony is that most of the arguments against genetically modified crops or are shallow or very far from reality and hide the big picture. political connotations and interests are more important, rather than a deliberate attempt to give a clear and concise manner of reality.

A key argument against GM crops is their being natural and artificial. However, the same argument was also raised during the introduction of pesticides and other elements to eliminate weeds for crop protection.

Opposition to genetically modified crops and food has a lot to do with social values ​​and political concerns of health and safety. "The awareness of their consumer rights and farmers fear the increasing dependence on multinationals, are symptoms of a deeper concern about the values ​​and priorities, the type of person who wants the environment, the role of biodiversity, risk tolerance and the people of are willing to pay price for regulation. Some people are concerned about the level of control exercised by a handful of chemical companies in the markets for seed. GMOs are emblematic of globalization on economic fears. In some areas, the hostility to GMOs is the symbol of a broader opposition to the invasion of market forces. They are perceived to create a world where money with little regard for historical traditions, cultural identities and social needs.

The potential risk of cross-pollination and contamination for the dissemination of material from genetically modified plants may be a problem for organic farming. Dispersion of material from genetically modified crops (seeds, for example) can occur over long distances, depending on the characteristics of plants and climatic conditions.

Risk Assessment of GM Foods for human health and environment

While the introduction of GM crops to solve the world food problem has come as a boon to a number of countries hit by food crisis, the experience gained so far has not been completely away from controversy. Many countries are facing opposition from various parties for the introduction of genetically modified seeds and crops in their fields. The problems are cultural, socio-economic and fears are not unfounded in a number of cases. So it becomes imperative for the countries and governments to conduct an exercise in environmental risk assessment carefully to avoid controversy introduction of new crop varieties. The program of risk assessment must include all elements that influence the introduction of any new use of non-organic varieties.

The history of risk assessment of GMOs:

When the new food (plant varieties, animal or micro-organisms) have been developed by traditional breeding methods are not generally subject to specific market risk pre-and post-market safety assessment or by national or international standards. This is in contrast with the needs of GMOs and GMOs. The concept of risk assessment of GMOs was discussed in 1975. At that time, the discovery of recombinant DNA has raised concerns among researchers about the potential creation of recombinant viruses whose escape would endanger public health and damage to the environment. Fourteen months after a voluntary moratorium on research involving recombinant DNA, the guidelines for experiments on physical and biological containment riskier were developed and adopted by the countries involved in the process.

The first legal regulation was designed to prevent accidental release of microorganisms from research facilities. Guidelines framed later approached the market of pre-human health and the requirement for environmental assessment and safety for all foods and GMOs. Many countries have implemented systems from the market before the adoption of specific regulations that require a rigorous assessment of GMOs prior to their release into the environment and / or use in food. This is to ensure adequate protection in this regard.

To ensure the consistency of the international risk analysis of GMOs, and a series of international standards bodies and regulators have adopted uniform rules. These include standards for human health and environmental safety assessment of GMOs, etc. The goal of uniform global standards for risk assessment would have been difficult, countries are required to make different decisions on the scope of the assessment, in particular resolution of whether to include social or economic.

The problems are complex and varied interests of stakeholders are often contradictory. The challenge, therefore, countries and governments and the reflection is to design a set of rules and policies that balance the interests of various stakeholders and are perceived as fair and equitable.

Recent Research Initiatives in GM Crops- Environment Impact

While recent research efforts have been in the areas of higher agricultural production, build a resistance to insects, as well as improving the nutritional value and content of the plants, efforts are also to address issues of environment and improve efficiency in the agricultural sector . A little effort, as in this area and are connected:

Increased antioxidant content. Several other content related to tomatoes have been increased, as is the case of soybeans. These nutrients are known to improve health or prevent disease. The research in this area is in a relatively early stage of development, as knowledge of the inner content is still limited and not all plant nutrients are beneficial for human consumption.

Environmental stress. Tolerance to environmental stresses by genetic modification is an area that is in the early stages of R & D. Resistance to salinity and drought are the subject of intense research. Salinity is estimated to affect 20% of agricultural land and 40% of irrigated land worldwide. Salt and drought tolerance involve many genes interact in complex requiring endless effort to unravel the mystery. Because of this multigenic character, traditional breeding techniques have had little success in creating varieties of salt or drought tolerant. tolerance to salt sensitive crops may be conferred on the transfer of multiple genes linked to an appropriate way in a plant tolerant. The expected time frame for commercialization of GM crops is not known, research is still in its infancy and there are complex issues that are faced by scientists.

The tolerance of aluminum (a limiting factor for growth in acid soils) is in the initial phase of R & D for crops, including papaya, tobacco, rice and corn, but should not be used commercially for many years.

Attempts have been made to improve the photosynthesis in plants through genetic modification. Crops such as corn and sugar cane are more efficient in converting energy into sugars that most broadleaf plants. With the introduction of genes for photosynthesis from one culture to another more efficient, the efficiency could be improved by 10% with better performance.

Characteristics of male sterility have been introduced to obtain 100% hybrid seed planting to contain the environmental impact of GM crops. Male sterile maize varieties have been approved for marketing in the United States. In addition, several male sterile oilseed rape and canola varieties were approved for environmental release and food use in the European Union (EU), Canada and the United States. Another strategy to contain the flow of genes between plants of the attempts to introduce the spread of asexual seed (seed production without pollination).